Data backup systems are important for storing information and preventing data loss. In a typical data storage environment, as data is generated by a client device, it is stored in appropriate production data storage. During a backup operation, the data is copied from the production data storage to backup media, e.g., removable media, such as optical disks or magnetic tapes, or fixed storage such as a content addresses storage, disk array, dedicated storage server, etc.
Some existing backup systems employ a backup server to copy data from the production data storage to the backup media. During a backup operation, the client device typically performs a discovery operation to determine the appropriate physical location for a file on the production data storage. The location information and the length of the file are transmitted to the backup server, which uses the location and length information for each file to copy that file from the given location to the backup media. However, performing file extent discovery on the client takes time and consumes computing resources on the client and therefore can affect adversely the client's performance and/or availability, as well as extend the total time required to complete a backup of the client.
It would be useful, among other things, to be able to backup a client without affecting the performance and/or availability of the client as greatly as current approaches.